Just for fun, and a little humor, I want to share with you the detailed account of one of my actual days this week. Days like this one prove to me what God shared with me a while back: Time with God isn't necessarily easier when your kids are past the pre-school age. All of life has its ups and downs and hills and valleys. The relationship we build with God has to be more solid than a time slot or a checklist. There are some days that my flare prayers are as good as it gets. I just spend the whole day reminding myself how much I need the Lord to survive - and not kill anyone.
So, enjoy! You can go ahead and laugh. I won't mind. :)
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The day begins (sorta) at 5:30 a.m. My alarm goes off and I hit snooze.
The alarm goes off again at 5:35, and I hit snooze.
The alarm goes off again at 5:40, 5:45, 5:50, 5:55, 6:00, and 6:05 before I actually get up.
My exercise aspirations were conquered once again by my love for flannel sheets and heated mattress covers.
6:07 a.m. I hit the shower AND wash my hair for the first time since...um...I think Wednesday. Isn't that gross?
6:30 a.m. Emerge from my room, dressed and ready to conquer - oh who am I kidding?! ready for coffee!
6:34 a.m. Sit down at the couch with coffee and spend some time talking to God about having a heart that is hungry for him...begin forming outlines and notes for the beginnings of a Bible Study curriculum (six week study) that I'm really excited about.
6:56 a.m. Try to wake up sons #1 and 2.
6:58 a.m. Go back to couch and keep working.
7:03 a.m. Try to wake up sons #1 and 2.
7:07 a.m. Try to wake up sons #3 and 4.
7:08 a.m. Try to wake up sons #1 and 2.
Is it Groundhog Day again?
7:10 a.m. Son #3 emerges from his room in a school uniform and lets loose his croupy cough while complaining how sore his throat is.
7:12 a.m. Son #2 emerges from his room in a school uniform with a bright red eye, complaining how sore his throat is.
7:15 a.m. inspect throats under the kitchen light and decide that two kiddos will be staying home from school.
7:21 a.m. Make sure son #1, still wrapped in a towel, realizes that his ride is leaving in four minutes.
7:26 a.m. Make sure son #1, who is still barefoot realizes that his ride is leaving in two minutes.
7:30 a.m. Separate son #4 from two stray puppies in the yard and drag kids to the van.
7:49 a.m. Return home and get out cereal.
8:00 a.m. Begin working.
8:10 a.m. Settle a fight about whether my very sick kids will be watching T.V. or playing the Wii.
8:12 a.m. Son #2 has "broken" #4's leg and he is forced to crawl with muffled cries across the living room while I silently shush him. I have a customer on the phone.
9:30 a.m. Begin working on headache customer's issue.
10:00 a.m. Still working on headache customer's issue.
10:10 a.m. Tell God that this day is just too much for me and ask for strength.
10:30 a.m. Still working on headache customer's issue. Realize that sons 1-3 have drug a bed mattress right behind me, all the way down the stairs and are jumping off the stairs onto it. They are oh, so sick.
11:00 a.m. Remind boys that they need to be dressed to go to the doctor.
11:15 a.m. Still working on headache customer's issue. Remind boys again that they need to get dressed. They have progressed from their pajamas to running around in their underwear with their t-shirts tied into bikini tops. There is something very wrong with this picture.
11:28 a.m. Finish headache customer's issue and threaten to leave the boys while I go to their doctor's appointment by myself. ( I know. Great threat.) They are still barefoot.
11:34 a.m. Leave home for the 11:30 a.m. doctor's appointment.
12:00 noon Doctor informs me that even though I waited five days this time to come in with the kids, it is still indeed viral, and my trip was pointless.
12:15 p.m.. Get in line at the post office.
12:25 p.m. Still in line at the post office.
12:30 p.m. Still in line at the post office.
12:35 p.m. Postal worker wheels out a cart of packages for me. That has never happened. I have never had that many packages.
12:40 p.m. Dump packages in van, return cart to post office lobby, and answer questions for a gentlemen about dropping off an express package, since I clearly work for the post office.
12:45 p.m. Call a friend and admit a dire need for help.
12:50 p.m. Drop son #4 off for afternoon kindergarten...that started at 12:15 p.m. Let his teacher know, that I, again, will not be back at 2:00, to fill my volunteer time slot.
1:00 p.m. Give lunch instructions to boys 2 and 3 and get back to work.
1:30 p.m. Tell boys that they are going to their own rooms and their own beds and not coming out until we leave to pick up #1 and 4 from school.
1:35 p.m. Tell son #3 to go back to his room.
1:40 p.m. Tell son #2 to go back to his room.
1:45 p.m. Tell son #3 to go back to his room.
1:50 p.m. Tell son #2 to go back to his room.
2:00 p.m. Son #1 calls to say that he can't go to study hall after school. It is canceled. He has to be off campus by 3:00.
2:02 p.m. Pretend not to notice that son #3 has left his room again, and is in the bathroom. again.
2:25 p.m. Finally allow sons 2 and 3 to be in the same room together if they keep the door closed and play quietly.
3:07 p.m. Realize that I forgot to pick up son #1 because he texts me to find out how close I am. I ask him to start walking to the other boys' school.
3:08 p.m. Son #2 has "broken" son #3's hip. He is resorted to army crawling - no army dragging across the dining room tile. He cannot walk.
3:10 p.m. Get in the van and wait for the crippled child to run to the van and get in.
3:12 p.m. Lose it with my kids! It was brewing for a while. Sigh.
3:20 p.m. Pick up #4 from kindergarten. Never saw #1 on the way. He must have walked a different route.
3:30 p.m. Lose #'s 2-4 on the playground...no, they're not on the playground! That is why they are lost. They are oh, so sick.
3:35 p.m. Breathe for five minutes on the school sidewalk and chat with a friend about our woes of helping boys learn to read.
3:40 p.m. Son #1 makes it to the school. Still haven't found #'s 2-4.
3:55 p.m. Get mail from mailbox at house. Open not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4 IDENTICAL letters from Citi Financial expressing their regret that I turned down their offer of a loan at 31.99% to pay off my lower interest credit cards and letting me know that they are still there for me, should I change my mind. Seriously? Who makes this stuff up?
4:00 p.m. Make it home with all four boys, make chore lists, and give snack choices. Head back to work.
4:10 p.m. Turn off t.v. and remind them of their chore lists.
4:20 p.m. Give permission for boys 2-4 to go play with friends after they have finished their chores and have a snack if they want it. They need to be home by 5:00.
4:45 p.m. Illustrate seven different back exercises and stretches for son #1 who has hurt his back somehow. I'm tempted to think it is related to his assigned chore.
4:57 p.m. Listen to son #1 explain that the reason his backpack smells like a tree is because two precious boys at school doused it with Axe body spray and attempted to set it on fire with a lighter.
5:12 p.m. Boys return and ask for a snack. They "didn't get one!" Stand by my guns. Snack time is over.
5:14 p.m. Listened to voice mail from my best friend. MISSED HER CALL!!!...somewhere in the snack time whining.
5:15 p.m. Warn the boys that we are leaving for church in 15 minutes.
5:25 p.m. Touch up makeup, grab drinks for potluck.
5:30 p.m. Get in the van and threaten to leave the barefoot children home alone. Pfff! Another good one.
5:38 p.m. Leave home and pick up Bill from work. Spend our 20 minutes for the entire day trying to catch up on what is going on. I tell Bill, "You don't want to know about my day. I'll just spare you." Finally break and highlight doctor's visits, kids running off at school, and headache customer.
6:00 p.m. Get to church and enjoy potluck.
6:15 p.m. Call #2 back from trying to get more dessert.
6:17 p.m. Call #3 back from trying to get more dessert.
6:19 p.m. Call #4 back from trying to get more dessert.
6:23 p.m. #2 escapes and gets more dessert.
6:25 p.m. Oh, glorious hallelujah!!! Childcare is open!!!! Two glorious hours of encouragement and talk on discipleship, and heart-searching, and prayer time and watch Louie Giglio's How Great is Our God and let God's greatness and magnificence pour over me. I soak in every glorious drop of encouragement.
8:30 p.m. Visit with friends and oogle over babies and head home.
8:40 p.m. Listen to voice mail from afore mentioned friend. She's on it!
8:45 p.m. Respond to whining kids in the van who "didn't get any dessert."
8:53 p.m. Miss the exit to get Bill's truck from work and have to turn around and go back.
9:10 p.m. Get home. Respond to whining about wanting stories.
9:15 p.m. Do dishes. Scrape avocado and smashed banana off the counter. Pick up bread crusts and spilled orange yogurt off the floor. Wash the floor.
9:40 p.m. Make hot tea. Sit down to watch the last 20 minutes of one of our favorite shows.
9:43 p.m. Catch a glimpse of my beautiful basket of Valentine verses on the end table and realize that we didn't do our verse today...or yesterday. :(
10:00 p.m. Start opening packages. Oh, yay! There is a tux from a friend for #3 to wear in Brother #2's wedding!!! Shirt and all!
11:00 p.m. Spend and hour blogging about my day. Don't I have better things to do?
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Happy Valentine's Day! Get off the computer and go kiss your honey!
...and if you'd like something more spiritual to read, go here! :D
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